URUMQI, April 18 (Xinhua) -- A new terminal at Urumqi Tianshan International Airport in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region began trial operations on Thursday, marking a major step in expanding regional air capacity.

The terminal is a key part of the airport's expansion project that started in 2019. With the upgrade, the annual passenger and cargo handling capacity has more than tripled for the airport, formerly known as Urumqi Diwopu International Airport, an air hub for China's westward opening up, according to Xinjiang Airport Group Co., Ltd.

With the completion of the expansion project, the airport now features three runways, up from one, and can accommodate up to 48 million passengers and 550,000 tonnes of cargo annually. It is now capable of supporting nearly 367,000 aircraft takeoffs and landings per year.

With the new terminal, the Urumqi airport will deliver higher-quality, more efficient air transport services and play a greater role in expanding high-level opening up and boosting regional economic and social development, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

First established in 1939, the airport has undergone four major expansions, with the latest upgrade completed this year.

According to the CAAC, the central government has allocated over 12 billion yuan (approximately 1.66 billion U.S. dollars) from the civil aviation development fund to support the airport's long-term growth. An additional 3 billion yuan from the central budget has also been invested to improve the airport.

With its expanded capacity and enhanced connectivity, the airport evolves from a regional gateway into a bridge linking China with central and western Asia.

Yang Fuqiang, director of the Institute of Sociology at the Xinjiang Academy of Social Sciences, said that the expansion is not just a simple infrastructure upgrade. Instead, it will bring more opportunities and possibilities for Xinjiang's regional economic development, and for international cooperation.

Ibrogimov Anvarshukur, president of the Uzbekistan-China Xinjiang Friendship Association, said that his first impression of the new terminal is that it is "absolutely breathtaking," and that the upgrade is more than just an architectural achievement.

He echoed Yang's sentiments and noted that the launch of the terminal paves the way for broader regional economic development and deeper international cooperation, and opens new horizons for trade and cultural exchanges between Uzbekistan and China.

The airport now operates 207 regular domestic passenger routes connecting China's major cities, and 26 international routes to destinations in Central Asia, Western Asia and Europe. In 2024 alone, the airport launched passenger and cargo routes to 22 regions in 16 countries.

According to Urumqi Customs, the city's foreign trade totaled 13.15 billion yuan in the first two months of this year -- a 21.2 percent year-on-year increase.

Among the more notable imports were fresh cherries from Central Asia, which can now arrive in Urumqi within two hours, as well as camel milk, apparel and footwear.

For many, this transportation efficiency brought by the Belt and Road Initiative and the development of the airport has been a game-changer.

Kazakh businesswoman Gulshara Bektembayeva, who moved to Xinjiang with her family in 2019 to engage in food trade, is one such beneficiary. "It's now much faster to ship goods and visit family. We're excited for more direct flights in the future."

"The development of the Urumqi Tianshan International Airport has helped transform the city from a landlocked hinterland into a rising frontier of opening up," said He Mingxing, a scholar at Xinjiang University.